Unit 1: General Principles of Property Law

Practice flashcards covering the general principles of property law, definitions of land, legal theories, and the doctrine of tenure and estates.

Land (Common Law)

Under common law, this includes the ground, soil, and anything attached to it such as trees, plants, hedges, and buildings.

quicquid plantatur solo, solo cedit

A Latin maxim meaning ‘whatever is attached to the ground becomes a part of it’.

Conveyancing Act 1889 (Jamaica)

A statute providing that ‘land’ includes houses and other buildings.

Real Property

Also known as Real Estate, it is defined as land plus everything permanently attached to it, characterized as property that doesn’t move.

Improvements

All manmade objects placed on the land.

Unimproved Land

A classification for land that is vacant.

Realty

Real property such as land including all permanently attached fixtures within its boundaries.

Personalty

Any personal property that is considered moveable, such as furniture.

Moveable Property

Personal assets, such as a vehicle, that can be easily moved from one place to another without changes to their structure.

Immoveable Property

Includes land, benefits arising out of land, and things attached or permanently fastened to the earth, such as a house (General Clauses Act 1987).

Fixtures

Material things physically attached to land that become part of the realty and the property of the landowner, passing automatically with conveyances.

Chattel

A physical object that never becomes attached to the land and does not pass with conveyances of the land.

Degree of Annexation

The first test to determine if an object is a fixture or chattel, considering how it is affixed and if removal would damage the item or land.

Purpose of Annexation

The second test to determine if an object is a fixture or chattel, asking if it is placed for the better enjoyment of the object or for the benefit of the land.

Elitestone Ltd v Morris [1997]

A case where a wooden bungalow was held to be part of the land because removal would require demolition, making it 'part and parcel' of the land.

Hellawell v Eastwood (1851)

A case where cotton spinning machines were found to be chattels because they were easily removed and the purpose of annexation was to steady the machines rather than benefit the property.

Bundle of Rights

A concept recognizing that property ownership entails a set of rights, including the right to hold, use, transfer, exclude others, and enjoy advantages.

Title and Ownership

Legal recognition of ownership established through titles, deeds, and procedures such as purchase, inheritance, or gift.

Eminent Domain

A legal power allowing the government to take private property for public use under specific conditions to satisfy the public interest.

Feudal System

Introduced into England in 1066, a system where all land belonged to the king, who granted possession to barons in return for services.

Subinfeudation

The historical process where barons and lords granted sub-tenancies to others, creating multiple layers of lords between the king and the occupant.

Quia Emptores 1290

The statute that prohibited the granting of new sub-tenancies, requiring land transfers to occur by outright alienation (substitution).

Doctrine of Tenure

A legal framework defining the connection between the landowner and the state, emphasizing that all land is ultimately held from the Crown.

Doctrine of Estates

A legal framework defining the nature and duration for which land is held, or the different types of interests in land.

Freehold Tenure

The most absolute kind of land ownership where the owner has complete ownership in perpetuity with no restrictions on transfer or duration.

Leasehold Tenure

A relationship where a landowner offers a tenant the right to use land for a set period through an agreement while ownership remains with the landowner.

Commonhold Tenure

A form of ownership where individuals have freehold ownership of a specific unit within a larger building development, sharing common areas with others.

Fee Simple Estate

The highest kind of ownership with the most broad rights to use, possess, transfer, and pass land to heirs forever.

Life Estate

An estate most often found in family settlements that grants the right to use and enjoy property until the holder's death.

Fee Tail Estate

An estate granting the right to use land for the life of the grantee and their lineal descendants; no longer exists in Jamaica.

Leasehold Estate

An estate giving the right to possession and use of land for a definite period of time, such as 21 or 99 years.